Rafa 'on another planet' - Harry

Harry Redknapp has been impressed with Rafael van der Vaart's first few weeks at the club.

Harry Redknapp has been impressed with Rafael van der Vaart's first few weeks at the club.

The Dutch playmaker has certainly made his mark since joining us on transfer deadline day.

He helped set-up our goal in his debut at West Brom, crossed for Peter Crouch to score our second goal at Werder Bremen and scored on his home debut, a penalty to equalise against Wolves and kick-start our recovery from 1-0 down to a 3-1 win.

Rafael was heavily involved again as we suffered a 1-0 loss at West Ham on Saturday, forcing Robert Green into a fine save before drilling a shot inches wide in the first half.

"He looks like a top player, real class," said Harry. "He plays in that position in the hole just behind the striker and finds space to get the ball.

"He's always on the move and always looking for the ball.

"He can receive the ball when it's tight and use his body to shield it, and if he's marked he can still receive the ball. That's a fantastic ability to have.

"He sees a pass, has a great left foot - he's a real quality player."

Harry eventually replaced Rafa after 78 minutes and said he was getting fitter all the time.

"He wasn't playing at Real Madrid so he came here not really having played any games," he said. "He's done well to come in and play the games he's played in such a short space of time."